Art and Public Space at Vassar and in Poughkeepsie
2021
To kick off the year-long theme of “Looking Back, Looking Forward, and Opening Better,” the 2021 Summer Institute for the Liberal Arts focused on art and public space at Vassar and in Poughkeepsie.
As Vassar continues to explore the development of the physical space that will serve as The Vassar Institute for the Liberal Arts, the current moment is an exciting time to consider the role art, architecture, and public space play (and have played) in engaging dialogue and building community. Art, broadly defined, has been cited as a pillar of Poughkeepsie’s civic renewal, and this Summer Institute explored unique partnerships between arts organizations in Poughkeepsie and Vassar. The convening of this two-day, virtual event included panels and lectures from scholars, practitioners, community activists, and local art leadership from nonprofit organizations from Vassar, Poughkeepsie, and beyond.
Panels and Lectures
Prototyping Partnerships
This session took a closer look at some public art partnerships between area colleges and community organizations. The presenters focused on the productive, the challenging, the inspiring, and the uncomfortable in these collaborations.
Partnerships Discussed
- Celebrating The African Spirit and Colloqate Design
- Hudson Valley Performing Arts Laboratory and SUNY New Paltz
- Vassar and Poughkeepsie City School District
- Center For Creative Education and Bard College
Recorded Presentations
Videos in this playlist
- Vassar’s Campus: Landscape Architecture as Art
- Designing with Nature
- Strengthening Communities Through the Arts
Presenters

Asho Ashittey ’23
Early Career Global Affairs Professional

Bryant “Drew” Andrews
Executive Director of the Kingston, NY-based Center for Creative Education (CCE)

Sakinah Bennett
Co-founded Sister-2-Sister and Teaching Artist at the Center for Creative Education

Liz Dahmen
Founding Artistic Director of the Hudson Valley Performing Arts Laboratory, Director and Writer

Kiana Duggan-Haas
Actor and Creative

Nicole Fenichel-Hewitt
Executive Director, The Art Effect

Cara Hunt ’15
Program Coordinator, NYU Grossman School of Medicine

Rick Jones
Laboratory Coordinator

Chris Kroner
Principal, MASS Design Group

Christine Howlett
Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities

Bryan Lee
Architect, Educator, Writer, and Design Justice activist. Founder/Design Principal, Colloqate Design

Carmen Marchaline McGill
Co-Founder and Board Chair, Celebrating the African Spirit

Mark Schlessman
Professor Emeritus of Biology

Bart Thurber
The Anne Hendricks Bass Director of the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center and Lecturer in Art

Adedoyin Teriba
Assistant Professor of Art History, Dartmouth College
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The Vassar Institute for the Liberal Arts
165 College Avenue, Poughkeepsie, New York 12604